The Celtics Had One Of Their Most Impressive Belt To Ass Showings Of The Season And Have Suddenly Won 7 In A Row

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7 in a row. 12 of their last 13. 15 of their last 18 since the All Star break. 19 of their last 23 over the last 2 months.

I'm not sure it gets better than that. Actually, that's a lie. In addition to all that, the Celts have now won 14 of their last 15 on the road! How rare is that?

When I say this is the best road team on planet Earth, I am not exaggerating. Not only do the Celts currently own the NBA's best road record (30-7), the 2024-25 Celtics also own the 2nd highest road point differential……in NBA history

I'll also remind you that since 2020, no team in the NBA has more road playoff wins than the Celtics (28). The next closest is 20. If we make that a little closer to this current era and start in say, 2022, the Celts have nearly 2x the playoff road wins (21) than the next closest (12). Over the last 2 years, it's been the same story. Celts have the most road playoff wins (13) and the next closest is the Nuggets (9). 

So the fact that they've kicked off this 6 game West Coast trip with a perfect 4-0 start so far isn't all that surprising. Even in a game like this, which did not include Jayson Tatum while going up against a Suns team who had been playing well (W4), it still didn't matter. This team won by 30! They are the true definition of road dogs

As I always say, perspective is important. March basketball is not a time of the year to put much stock into what you're seeing, both in terms of the good and the bad. This time last year, the Celts lost back to back games against the Hawks. You'll never believe this, but that was treated as if the world was ending. It meant they were destined to lose early in the playoffs, they were frauds etc etc. Very embarrassing takes everywhere you looked. As we learned, that was very much not the case when the playoffs rolled around.

I'd say the same thing is true now that we're on the other end of the spectrum and are currently experiencing this

That is A LOT of green Ws. But I'll remind you, March basketball does not predict playoff success or failure. Yes, you want to be playing well. Yes, I would much rather see a green W in that picture than a red L. The only takeaways that matter are that the team is healthy, playing well, and still giving the end of the regular season the proper amount of respect and effort as to not piss off the Basketball Gods. 

That's it.

This does not mean they'll go 4-0 every playoff series just because they're crushing teams at this stage of the regular season. The same way if they were losing these games it wouldn't mean they were cooked for the playoffs. Do not do that. It is not how these things work. 

Instead, just appreciate the awesome basketball that we're watching at this moment in time. It rules. The fact that it would take a disaster for this team not to win 60 games in their title defense season, given their injury situation this year, is patently insane. For that to also happen with a +9.1 point differential is even more insane. From 32-15 to 54-19 is impressive as hell, and the scary part is I truly feel like this team can still reach an even higher level of play. 

But before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let's first talk about what we watched last night.

The Good

- When the Celts get the rare occurrence of Jayson Tatum sitting out a game, we all know what that means. Considering he's the sun that all things orbit around when it comes to this team, that's a pretty important piece you have to suddenly survive and execute without. When that happens, it means every single player that touches the floor needs to level up. At the top of the list are the two best remaining players. They set the tone. That's how it always is and always will be. When the top dogs show up, the rest of the team usually follows.

First on that list is, of course, Jaylen Brown. One of the franchise pillars, a game like going up against a team playing well and fighting for their playoff lives, requires Jaylen to not just be good, but to be great. These are the moments you need to play like a franchise player, which is exactly what we got

Outside of a few early poor defensive rebounding efforts, I'd say Jaylen played as close to flawless basketball as you could ask for in this situation. I loved pretty much every aspect of his night. He was efficient (46/44%), he made his open 3s, he was tied for 2nd on the team in assists, only had 1 TO, made all his FTs, and was a +24 in his 28 minutes. 

Without Tatum, I don't think anyone would have been surprised if Jaylen forced his FGA, but the fact that he finished with just 15 shots, which was in line with everyone else in the game, told you he had the right mental approach. Last night marked Jaylen's 27th game of the season with at least 5 AST, and he's played in only 58 on the year. He had just 21 of those games all of last regular season!

In terms of his offensive approach, considering efficiency was going to be important without Tatum and the fact that the Suns didn't really have a legit rim protector or paint defender, Jaylen's shot profile was a chef's kiss

When Tatum doesn't play, finding ways to still get paint touches is extremely important, and Jaylen's night is a good example of why. Sure, the paint scoring is great, but getting into the paint, combined with his improved playmaking, is how the Celts were able to generate easy offense. You know, just like what Tatum gives them whenever he enters the paint. Sometimes it's a bucket, and other times it's an easy lob. The point is that you are making the defense make a choice.

That's something Jaylen was great at in this game. He made the Suns defenders make a choice, but the problem was there was no good choice for them to make. If you let Jaylen get to where he wants, he scores. If you decide to send help, his improved passing kills you anyway. This could all be summed up in 1 play

At the start of this possession, Kornet signaled to Jaylen that he should iso, because he knew what that meant in terms of the Suns rotating, which would lead to an open dunk. Look at all that space in the paint. This is why Mazzulla Ball works. You have legit shooting all around the perimeter, a center in the dunker spot and an elite iso player with the ball. 

So what happened? Jaylen went into iso, and the Suns were faced with a choice. Give up the easy paint dunk/layup or send help. Jaylen read the play the entire way and perfectly executed the easy lob. It's simple, but that's the point. Things don't need to be overly complicated. Just keep your eyes up, read the defense, and make the simple play. I'd argue 1-2 years ago, this was a contested FGA from Jaylen. A forced shot that probably misses. Now? Now it's perfect basketball. That's growth. That's development. 

- Then of course, there was Kristaps Porzingis. I don't think it's a hot take to say that KP has been the 2nd best and 2nd most consistent Celtic this season. When the only downside of his season is some mystery illness that kept him out for a few weeks, I'd say his Year 2 season has been everything you could ask for and more. 

If you want an example of why so many people consider KP to be the ultimate cheat code for this team, watch those highlights. We're now at the point where every time I watch KP play, all I can do is sit there and laugh to myself as I wonder how on earth is this a real player. He does everything! Remember when there was maybe some concern about how he would look after recovering from the bubonic plague? How's this look?

Not exactly a murderer's row of opponents, but who gives a shit? I care about his health and I care about him being the best version of himself, which is what we're getting. I mean, he gave us the full bag in this win. Post up jumpers, attacking closeouts off the dribble at 7'3, multiple 30ft bombs, rim protection, the Suns had zero answers defensively for KP because guess what?

Nobody has a defensive answer for this version of KP. That's why he's the cheat code!

You can't switch, you can't double, you are going to lose in the post, and if you give him space on the perimeter, you're going to lose from that area as well. I don't know much, but what I do know is if this is the version of KP the Celts can have for a playoff run, it's really hard for me to see them losing 4 out of 7 to anyone. The thing is, this isn't even KP overachieving! This is just his normal production! 

Being so close to the playoffs, I still hold my breath for every second KP is on the court. You just never know when it comes to him because it always feels like the other shoe is about to drop. But right now? You're seeing the best version of KP and what that player does for the ceiling of this team. It raises it to a level that I'm not sure any team on earth can touch.

Getting an efficient 54 points from your two best players in a game without Tatum is about as good as it gets, so shoutout to KP/Jaylen for stepping up.

- I don't even know how to describe what we saw from Al Horford. There's something about these games where he goes up against a fellow legend that always seems to get the best out of Al. We saw it against LeBron, we saw it against Jokic, and we saw it again last night against KD. I can only imagine that when the rest of the roster sees a 38 year old play with this much energy and force, it has to be contagious. 

A true GOAT. A Champion. A Knight. 

We only have a handful of these empty the tank games from Al every year, but given he had just sat the B2B you could tell right away that his legs were fresh, and if Al has fresh legs good fucking luck. You're not getting 38 year old Al in those games, you're getting 27 year old Al. The fact that Al was easily the 3rd best player in this game shouldn't surprise anyone, because this is what being reliable looks like. He knew that with Tatum out, his production was needed, and he delivered on both ends of the floor in vintage Al fashion. 

When I see Al play, I see a guy who has at least 2-3 more years left in the tank. This does NOT look like a player who should be hanging up his shoes anytime soon, which means it's time for the new owner to pony up and pay whatever it takes to keep Al around after this season. Take away the leadership part, the basketball part is still very much worth it.

- Call me crazy, but an entire roster finishing a game with 50/40/90 splits all without their best player is what I would call pretty good. That's the beauty of Mazzulla Ball. You never get a break from it, no matter who is in or out of the lineup. A wagon is a wagon for a reason, and this my friends, is what a wagon looks like

I don't care who the Celts are playing, they are almost never going to lose when they finish with that type of efficiency, make 22 3PM, have 33 AST, and only turn the ball over 10 times. The math is the math, unfortunately. I dunno what else to say.

Why the Suns thought it was a good defensive strategy to leave all the Celtics shooters wide open is something I cannot answer, but I sure as shit am glad they did. Shoutout Coach Bud, you nailed it! 

- If you had to come up with what an ideal non-Tatum game looks like, what we saw against PHX is it. Great play from the top players, and the "others" doing their part as well.

The Stock Exchange came through, with White/Jrue combining to finish 11-21 (6-15) with 10 AST and only 2 TOs with a combined +/- of +62. Derrick was making the 3s (4-10), Jrue was finishing from 2pt range (4-5). Both had 16 points, both played solid defense, and when the guard play is strong, we know what it does for this team. Given all the attention KP/Jaylen got it's not as if things were a challenge for the guards, all they had to do was execute and make their open looks. 

Then you add in Sam Hauser, who is looking more and more locked in with each passing game finishing 4-5 (3-4) while also being active defensively and it's hard to find someone who didn't play well in this win. It was truly a collective effort, which is why I call it the ideal scenario in a non-Tatum game.

The production was efficient, it was balanced, they made their 3s, they took care of the ball, and they held a team to the low 100s. Try telling me that's not ideal.

- Look, I'm not going to say it. We're ALL thinking it, but I'm trying to stay level headed

Actually, fuck that. I can't hold it in. Refill your Celts Kool Aid and let's get nuts.

I've seen enough to declare Baylor Scheierman a draft hit. Yes, I know these are mostly fake games, but you need to stop assuming I give a shit about that stuff. Being a draft hit to me means that right now, Baylor has shown that he's a playable NBA player. That's all we have right now, but that is not insignificant. In fact, I'd argue it's VERY significant. Finding cheap, playable end of bench players is CRUCIAL given the Celts cap situation. They need to hit on these guys in order to keep this train moving, and the more we see of Baylor the more he looks like a hit.

The shooting is actually as good as Brad promised, but that doesn't really do Baylor justice when talking about his game. His overall feel, his passing, the pace in which he plays with, how he seems to get more and more comfortable reading the floor and knowing where the right play is, it's impossible not to get a little drunk on the potential. There's a swagger to his game as well that I don't think can be ignored either. If you ask me, if the Celts find themselves in a pickle due to injury or foul trouble in a playoff game, I cannot think of a deep bench reserve wing who should be playing over Baylor right now. Not Torrey Craig, not Jordan Walsh. 

Did I think we'd be here after seeing Baylor's early season minutes? Hell no. But that's why patience is keys when it comes to rookies, no matter how old they are. We're seeing in real time what experience and confidence can do to a young player, and look at the early returns!!

- A lead as high as 34, a total of 0 ties and 0 lead changes. This is what you call a wire to wire ass whooping. On the road, without your best player. I fucking love this team.

The Bad

- I'd say KD is still on the short list of players that you are absolutely terrified whenever they have the ball. The dude simply does not miss. When you think of elite shotmaking, I'm not sure how many players you put ahead of KD. It didn't really matter who took the assignment; everyone got cooked. Jrue had no chance, Jaylen was a little better, but KD still got buckets, he's just that unguardable from every zone on the floor.

I could make the case that the Celts caught a prayer in that KD only took 16 shots. The game turned when he sat in the 2nd quarter, and from there, the Suns never really challenged. 

- This had to be the first time all season we've seen Kornet fumble 2 lobs in the same game. I didn't even know he was still capable of that now that he no longer has stone hands and has basically turned himself into a starting caliber center. 

Not a big deal of course, but definitely weird to see in real time

- Speaking of throwbacks, shoutout to DWhite for a brutal 2 on 1 fastbreak attempt that ended in a TO while trying to throw an entry pass. I swear you won't find a team this good be this bad in transition offense, but every once in a while, we get a disaster fastbreak that makes you a bit nostalgic for the pre-title Celtics who couldn't run a fastbreak or throw a lob to save their lives.

-  Unfortunately, Payton Pritchard was the only guy who couldn't really make a jumper in this game. He finished just 3-10 (1-8) on mostly clean looks, so this was the rare off night for Payton that can sometimes happen.

The good news is he still found a way to make an impact with 5 REB and 6 AST, but on a night where nobody could miss I did find it odd that Payton was such a brick considering how well he's been shooting the ball lately.

The Ugly

- 7 in a row, you know the drill!

Now with a few days off before Game 5 of this road trip, I imagine given how Tatum looked at shootaround yesterday, he'll be back, but with only 9 games left in the season, it's time to start picking rest spots for everyone on the roster. Give KP a night off, let Derrick and Jrue rest, find a spot for Pritchard etc. They've played everything perfectly up until this point, so let's not get crazy in an effort to secure 60 wins. You can do that with any version of this roster given the Celts have the easest remaining schedule in the NBA, so from here on out it's all about health.